Andrews University Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary

SSP 1

A Paper Presented in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Course NTST543 Intro to Exegesis and Theology 2: Acts & General Epistles

by Jamison Wallington 2014

Introduction This paper will examine the New Testament (NT) text of Acts 17:241 and the Old Testament (OT) text of 1 Kings 8:272. In the text of Acts 17 there are numerous OT allusions,3 this author will examine these together as a unit to portray the allusion from Acts to 1 Kings rather than examine all the OT allusions as noted in the footnote below. Next, there will be a discussion regarding the use of the OT passage in the NT context and finally an application to this authors personal ministry. Inter-textual Connections Connections with the Old Testament Passage The first comparison of the two texts reveals they both employ a form of indicating a loose textual connection.4 Additionally, the following concepts are also parallels: God being greater than His creation; the correlation between Solomon (man) making the Temple and man-made altars (Acts); the idea that God cannot dwell strictly in human dwellings emphasizing that God comes to be with humanity in the templebut his real dwelling place is in heaven.5

, 2 3 Other OT allusions that Acts 17:24 refers to include but are not limited to: Isa. 42:5; Gen. 1:1; Exod. 20:11; Neh. 9:6; Ps. 146:6; Wis. 9:1, 9. 4 G.K. Beale & D. A. Carson, Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament. (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007), 594. 5 Ibid, 568. There is also a correlation between Stephens speech and 1 Kings 8:27 that could be examined in another paper.

New Testament Modification The NT modification of the OT text only shows that Paul is paraphrasing Solomons statement which is more than adequate for a Jewish hearer to understand his correlation. However, as will be discussed below, Paul is talking to a highly Greek audience and therefore this connection to 1 Kings 8 may not have been understood by those individuals. Paul bridges the connection from Solomons statement to the Greeks understanding showing that while the citizens of Athens were looking for altars to confine their deities, Pauls statement, biblically based, shows that there is only one God who does not live in temples.6

Old Testament Context 1 Kings uses this verse to expound upon the uniqueness of God.7 Solomon recognizes that even Gods creation cannot contain God, then how much less the temple that Solomon has built.8 Further, 1 Kings argues to the omnipresence of God, that He is a God who is above the limitations of nature with the Hebrew wording rendering that God is in the highest heaven, literally, heaven of heavens which is to express a superlative idea and may place God in the Most Holy Place,9 above all created matter.

Frank E. Gaebelein & J. D. Douglas, The Expositors Bible Commentary with The New International Version of T he Holy Bible, vol. 9 (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1981), 476. 7 As the Creator of Heaven and Earth. 8 Raul R. House, The New American Commentary 1, 2 Kings, Vol. 8 (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995), 143. 9 George Arthur Buttrick, The Interpreters Bible, Vol. III (Nashville: Abingdom Press, 1980), 78.S

Use of the OT in the NT In Acts 17 Paul is discussing the altar to the Unknown God. In Pauls speech to the citizens of Athens from his Hebrew background, he recalls 1 Kings 8 where he uses the knowledge of Solomons speech that God cannot be confined to an earthly dwelling to illustrate The God the citizens of Athens should worship instead of man-made idols/altars (temples?). Further, Paul makes the connection that Jesus has replaced, in essence, the temple(s) of man-made origins.10 Thus, Paul makes the argument that God meets people through Jesus and that He is the replacement of any earthly temple.11 The replacement of earthly temples can be seen by the birth of Jesus, as the new Temple, emphasiz[ing] the aspect of Gods presence among his people, while Jesus presentation in the Temple highlights the sacrificial aspect.12 Application to Ministry Preach Jesus and Him crucified.13 The understanding of Jesus as the New Temple14 as well as the allusions Paul draws to confirm what Solomon declared, that God is too big, too mighty, to omnipresent, to be confined to one area is the story of the Gospel. The book(s) of Luke-Acts both declare salvation beyond the scope of the Jews to include the Gentiles,15 something the earthly temple system did not equally allow. Paul, showing the limitations of the man-made altars and Solomon declaring the shadow of a greater (heavenly) sanctuary16 further indicates the scope of God and His plan for this earth. This plan, the gospel as proclaimed by
10

It should be noted that Paul isnt, in the context of Acts 17, arguing against the Jewish Temple, he is arguing for the sacrifice of Jesus and that humanity is an offspring o f God thus gods cannot be made in the image of gold, but that Jesus is in the image (human-divine) of the true Temple, see Acts 17:28-31. 11 Kevin J. Vanhoozer, Craig G. Bartholomew, Daniel J. Treier & N. T. Wright , Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible, (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005), 782. 12 GADENZ, PABLO T. "Jesus the New Temple in the Thought of Pope Benedict XVI." Nova Et Vetera (English Edition) 11, no. 1 (Winter2013 2013): 211-230.Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed January 26, 2014). 13 Galatians 6:14, my paraphrase. 14 Or in the sense of humanity being the Temple of the Holy Spirit and Christ as the replacement for the sacrificial purposes of the earthly temple period. 15 Dr. Felix Cortex, Personal Communication (Class Discussion), Andrews University, Spring Semester, 2014. 16 literally:

Jesus Christ, emphasizes the need for our modern-day ministries to also think outside of our sanctuaries to reach people where they are and worshiping the idols/altars that their hands have constructed (i.e. money, sex, work, etc.). Let my ministry always proclaim Jesus as a presence/person near to dwell with us but never diminish His holiness to be worshiped.

Bibliography Beale, G. K. & Carson, D. A., Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007. Buttrick, George Arthur, The Interpreters Bible, Vol. III. Nashville: Abingdom Press, 1980. Gadenz, Pablo T. "Jesus the New Temple in the Thought of Pope Benedict XVI." Nova Et Vetera (English Edition) 11, no. 1 (Winter2013 2013): 211-230.Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost accessed January 26, 2014. Gaebelein, Frank E. & Douglas, J. D. The Expositors Bible Commentary with The New International Version of The Holy Bible, vol. 9. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1981. House, Raul R. The New American Commentary 1, 2 Kings, Vol. 8. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995. Vanhoozer, Kevin J., Bartholomew, Craig G., Treier, Daniel J. & Wright, N. T. Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005.